


Now We're Only Falling Apart

by ominousbears



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Angst, Book VII: The Chariot (The Arcana), Breakups, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Named Apprentice (The Arcana), lightly implied asra/apprentice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 18:11:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17882714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ominousbears/pseuds/ominousbears
Summary: Once again, Julian fucks something up and Asra's left to pick up the pieces. He'd ask if Julian could keep the people he loves out of the crossfire, but that would only spur him on.Or, an elaboration on the events in Book VII, Chapter III of Julian's route.





	Now We're Only Falling Apart

"The time we spent together, however brief... It mattered to me. I won't forget it."   
  
Tauli feels the beginnings of tears pool in her eyes and she abruptly turns her head to hide behind her hair. She feels a headache coming on from the effort of holding it all in. Tension pulls at her throat and words are hard to form. "Julian, I..." She doesn't know what more to say, much less how to say it, and she hesitates almost a moment too long. He starts to walk away and she stretches a hand out to him, just out of reach, but manages to ask, "Can we at least still be friends? I want to help you, Julian, please."   
  
He doesn't turn around, doesn't look back as he simply murmurs, "Goodnight, Tauli," and disappears into the night with a swirl of black and red.   
  
The tears come in full force now, falling down her face in rivulets and leaving messy streaks in their wake as she struggles to draw breath and unlock the door to the shop. Her hands shake and she fumbles it a few times, trying to keep her crying as quiet as she can, before the door flies open and she darts inside. The usual reassuring warmth and scents there do little for her now as she slumps back against the door, closing it with a loud click, and slides down to the floor. She draws herself into a ball, pulling her arms and legs tight against her own body, and lets the sobs come freely now that she's safe and alone. It's loud and it sounds awful but all she needs is a few minutes to get it out of her system and then she should be okay--   
  
"Tauli?"   
  
Asra's voice breaks through her despair too easily and she cuts herself off with a quiet strangled cry. She can't see him clearly through the heavy blur of tears but she recognizes his white hair and magenta sash as he rushes to her side, hands hovering like he doesn't know if he can touch her. With the distance between them closed, she can see his concerned look now and it sends her flying back into choked sobs. She throws herself into his arms and they both fall backwards with the force of it as he stares down at her, bewildered as his heart breaks for her. She's shaking so hard against him and her tears are already soaking through his shirt, so the questions he has die in his throat. He simply pulls her in close and strokes her hair reassuringly as she cries her little heart out.   
  
It's a long time before she can quiet down and even longer before either of them speak, but it's Asra who eventually breaks the silence.   
  
"What's wrong, Tauli? What happened?" he asks, running his fingers through golden strands of hair. There's no reply save for a quiet sniffle, so Asra rests his cheek on top of her head and sighs. "Talk to me, dear, let me help you," he urges.   
  
Tauli hesitates but sits up and faces him, though she stares down at her hands in her lap and refuses to meet his worried gaze. "It’s just... you know Julian, right?"   
  
Asra blinks in surprise. "What about him?"   
  
She shrugs minutely, wringing her hands nervously. "We've been spending some time together lately and I thought things were going well, he kept giving me all these signals, and I  _ thought _ we were getting closer, but then tonight at the docks, he just pushed me away." She lets out a strangled breath and wipes hard at her eyes with the heel of her palm. "What did I do  _ wrong _ , Asra? What did I  _ miss _ ?" she asks, shrinking in on herself.   
  
Asra scowls, though it's not directed at her. "You didn't do anything, Tauli, Ilya just loves drama and his own suffering."   
  
Tauli opens her mouth for a moment as if to argue, but thinks better of it and huddles down again. "But what do I do now?" she whispers down to her hands.

  
Asra's gaze softens and he rests a hand over hers, making her look up at him with a ghost of desperation in her eye. "What do you  _ want _ to do?" he asks quietly. She hesitates and looks away as she rubs the fabric of her wrist wraps, but there's a tiny smile on her lips. Asra lets out a small, fond laugh and leans back. "I think you already know," he murmurs, standing up as she blushes faintly. "If anyone can break Ilya of that kind of behavior, it's you." He pads over to the stairwell and glances back over his shoulder, a sad, longing look in his eye that she can't see. "Just... be careful, alright? I don't want to see you get hurt. ...I'll be upstairs making dinner whenever you're ready."   
  
The only sounds left in the shop as Tauli stands to follow are the sizzling of food upstairs and whispers between Faust and Asra on the edges of her mind. She feels the beat of her heart in her chest and the drying tear streaks on her face, and her breathing gets a little lighter.   
  
She'll... she'll talk to Portia tomorrow. Portia can help her figure out what she can do to help Julian.   
  
She can't give up that easily.

**Author's Note:**

> come hang out with me on [tumblr](http://ominousbears.tumblr.com/) or on [twitter](https://twitter.com/ominousbears) ✌


End file.
